Tuesday, November 01, 2011

Is your presentation too linear?

I was in Mallorca for a few days last week. The railway line that runs
from Palma to Soller is not what you could call a straight line. It runs
through tunnels and winds through mountains, but gets to the right
destination. Speeches don't have to be a straight line either.
Traditionally, you tell people what you are going to tell them, tell
them, and tell them what you told them (the traditional "business
sandwich"). Often a series of slides takes you along the path from start
to finish, making it tough to deviate at all.

Some display software, such as Prezi allows
the creation of a presentation from chunks of information that don't
need to follow in any particular sequence. However, delivering a
non-linear presentation is not about software, it's about an approach
which many speakers find uncomfortable. Increasingly, audiences are
demanding a style which is more than just a procession of slides, so now
is probably a good time to think about your speech structure.

Not every speech lends itself to a non-linear style. Not every audience
will appreciate it. Furthermore, you must still have some kind of
overall structure and aim, otherwise you will simply be presenting a
mass of information with no overall message. Delivering in a non-linear
way may demand more preparation and more subject knowledge than a linear
narrative. It may also require what a pal of mine used to call "a big
dose of brave pills".

Many stand-up comedians are masters of non-linear delivery. They can
deviate for minutes at a time, but still return to a core message. They
may tell stories in a different sequence each time they speak,
responding to prompts or questions from the audience, or just how they
feel. In my opinion, the more interactive and non-linear you can learn
to be, the more people will want to see you speak. You can choose to
ignore the trend, but the train may leave without you.

No comments:

The information in this blog may be freely re-used in any online or offline publication, provided it is accompanied by the following credit line - "This information was written by Alan Stevens, and originally appeared in "The MediaCoach Report", at mediacoach.blogspot.com"

My professional qualifications include - MCIPR (Member of the Chartered Institute
of Public Relations), FPSA (Fellow of the Professional Speakers Association) and PSAE (Professional Speaking Award of Excellence)

For the past 25 years, I have appeared regularly on BBC TV
News, Sky News, Radio 4 and Radio 5 Live as well as in every ITV region and dozens
of local radio stations.